Pennsylvania ends fiscal year with higher-than-expected tax revenue

FROM PENNLIVE

Pennsylvania’s tax collections are starting the 2011-12 fiscal year with a full head of steam.

The Pennsylvania budget
Enlarge JOE HERMITT, The Patriot-News Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett with his wife Susan at his side, makes his way into the Rotunda to sign his first state budget which will spend $27.15 billion. In the background, from left is Lt Gov. Jim Cawley, Chief of Staff William Ward and on the right is Budget Secretary Charles Zogby. It has been nine years since a state budget has been approved on time. The spending plan passed both chambers of the Legislature this week without a single Democratic lawmaker voting in favor.

The state Department of Revenue said today that tax collections finished in June exceeded expectations, leaving the state with $785 million, or nearly 3 percent more than it expected in the just-ended fiscal year.

The state budget office now expects to collect $27.85 billion in revenue in the just-begun 2011-12 fiscal year, or slightly more than 1 percent above the $27.5 billion in revenue in the just-ended year. Some of that money is given back to taxpayers in the form of refunds.

Gov. Tom Corbett’s budget secretary has said he believes the budget uses about $200 million of the surplus money, while Senate Democrats say they believe about $250 million of the surplus money is being used

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2011/07/pennsylvania_ends_fiscal_year.html